Automobiles mount thereon various communications apparatuses such as radio, television, telephone, navigator, etc. to receive, transmit, or receive and transmit ground wave and satellite wave.
Generally, such automobile antenna for reception, transmission, or reception and transmission comprises an antenna base, on which an electrical equipment substrate and bases of antenna elements are arranged, an antenna cover that covers the antenna base, and a sealing member (antenna pad) facing a vehicle body side, that is, an outer plate panel of an automobile.
With conventional antennas of this kind, an antenna base is fitted inside an opening of an antenna base cover and an antenna base pad having a bottom wall is externally fitted and fixed to the antenna base cover.
With such construction, however, the antenna base pad is mounted to an external shape of the antenna base, so that an appearance shape being different from an external shape of an antenna body presents itself with the result that an entire antenna is marred in outward appearance.
That is, an antenna base pad is a part made of a rubber material (EPDM material, elastomer, etc.) to fit a subtle R-surface shape of an outer plate panel of a vehicle body to achieve waterproofing into an interior of an antenna from outside, but always has a larger shape than that of an antenna base since the antenna base pad is put on a bottom of the antenna base from outside to cover an outside of the antenna base. Further, when the antenna is mounted on the outer plate panel, it is clamped from a back side of the outer plate panel by means of nuts or the like. At this time, the antenna cover is collapsed and deformed to extend outward, so that an apparent size is increased more and more. Therefore, an extreme, unpleasant sensation is produced on a shape of the antenna base and an appearance shape of the antenna body, and degradation in appearance is not avoided.
Also, since an outside portion of the antenna base pad projects outside the antenna cover, it is liable to be influenced by a change in environmental condition such as the sunshine, temperature change, etc., so that aging and deterioration are liable to accelerate. In addition, since the outside portion of the antenna base pad projects outside the antenna cover, there is involved a problem that it is susceptible to mechanical damage.    Patent Document 1: JP-A-2000-252725